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Kingston, RI – Junior fullback Cody Taulbee ran for his first career touchdowns and junior Alex Norocea booted a 41-yard field goal to lift Brown a 17-7 victory over Rhode Island in the 97th Annual Governor's Cup football game. The Bears extend their record to 3-1, and retained the Governor's Cup by defeating URI in Kingstown for the first time since 2004.

"It's a nice thing that we get to keep the Governor's Cup and bring it back to Providence," said Bears' head coach Phil Estes. "That's something we haven't done in a while. We did some really good things defensively and did an especially good job in short yardage situations."

Taulbee's touchdowns came on runs of six and 10 yards. He ran for 44 yards on 10 carries, while senior tailback Mark Kachmer rushed 17 times for 73 yards.

"Our offensive line should get all the credit," said Taulbee. "While I'm happy to get two touchdowns it was the offensive line and Jackson Freeman making the kick-out block, who made it all happen."

But it was Brown's defense that made the difference in the game, shutting out its opponent in the second half for the second straight game.

Senior free safety Anthony Franciosi led the Bears defense with 12 tackles, including 11 solo hits. Sophomore linebacker Dan Giovacchini had the best game of his career with a quarterback sack, three tackles for a loss of 21 yards and nine tackles overall. Senior captain Ross Walthall also had six tackles, three for a loss, including a key fourth down stop in the fourth quarter.

Brown's defense stopped the Rams on their first two offensive possessions and the Bears' offense got rolling midway through the opening quarter.

Taulbee scored his first career touchdown and gave the Bears an early 7-0 lead when he scampered into the end zone from six yards out with 7:01 left in the first quarter, capping a 50-yard drive. The key play in the drive was a 16-yard Donnelly pass to Evans on third down that advanced the Bears to the six-yard line.

Following a fumble recovery by Brown senior Adam Pelzer, Brown took over at the URI 22 yard line. Taulbee got into the end zone three plays later, scoring untouched on a 10-yard run with 11:04 remaining in the second quarter.

Rhode Island got on the scoreboard following a questionable pass interference call deep in Brown territory. Rams' quarterback Robert Bensten scampered into the end zone from the three yard line to trail, 14-7, with just 15 seconds left in the half.

Junior kicker Alexander Norocea lifted the Bears to a 17-7 lead with a 41-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter.

With the rams driving midway through the fourth quarter, Brown senior captain Ross Walthall came up with a big stop on fourth and one at the Bears' 24-yard line, stopping the URI drive.

Brown plays its third straight game on the road, traveling to Princeton, New Jersey for a nationally televised match-up against Ivy rival Princeton on Saturday, October 13 at Princeton Stadium. The NBC Sports Network will televise the game starting at 12:00 noon.